The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1887-07-11
AMERICANS in EUROPE.
Charge that They Are Undergoing
Decentralization.

to The New York Times: There are
n great many Americans living in
Europe. There Is large colony In
London and a much larger one In
Paris Throughout all the continental
cities there are increasing colonies Of
rich Americans. There is large colony
in Berlin. In the winter time Rome
is throngcd with Americans. All
through the Riviera there are more
Americans than other foreigners. Every
year brings over larger number of
tourists from the United States. They
bring with them rs general thing
plenty of money and spend 1t freely.
The American passion for visiting
Europe results in great loss Of money
to United States. But the loss in tho
case of the tourist who comes for
short time for study and Improvement
is made up by the gain in the education
of the visitor. But the most serious loss
and drawback to the United States
come from the large emigration from
the United States to Europe of some of
our richest people. There is very
large number of wealthy Americans
WHO now spend the greater part of
their lives in the continental cities of
Europe. These people come over with
an indefinite idea of what they will do,
and become completely enthralled the
by life of pleasuse to be head by people
OF leisure in Europe. They soon learn to
forget their own country and remain
away year after year, thinking that
some time they will 60 home, but
when they do they stay but short
time and come drifting back to their
old life of ease and indolent travel.
Some of the heads of these wandering
American families hug to Their breasts
the delusion that they are over here for
the purpose Of educating their children
and to teach them foreign langua ges.
Their children do pick up smattering
of French, German. and possibly of
some of the other continental languages.
The slight gain obtained in their facility
to talk in two or three languages is
more than lost through their lack of
proper education in other directions.
Wandering about with their parents
they become unsettled and receive no
regular, thorough education. They are
untitled to 60 home and engage in bust
ness, and they are not fitted for any
thing else but the wandering life which
the have led If they have plenty Of
money they can manage to get along.
but there are many cases reported at
the legations of Americans who lose
their money through long life abroad
and consequent inattention to their
business affairs at home. The result
is often great poverty nd dist ass.
The greater number III tmerie. Ne
who live abroad labor under ihe ''i4..
that they are studying and improving
themselves. They are not. They are
simply undergoing process of dena-
tionalization. They lose all interest
in their own country and its affairs.
Their patriotism becomes reduced to
the lowest possible degree. They are
always ready to chime in with the for
eign critics of our institutions. And
know of no greater EVIL than being ban
ished from Europe. There is no other
nation in the world that sends out such
large number of wealthy emigrants as
ours. There is very small number Of
English people among the foreign col
onies on the continent The so-called
better class OF England swear by their
own country. They would live no where
else. You will never find any English
man with such poor opinion of his
own country or its institutions that he
will sit silent when they are being made
the subject of adverse criticism. This
trait of national character mi ght well
be emulated by our rich classes, who
are constantly leaving the United States
because they find life in Europe so
much pleasanter. They chase after the
social dignitarics and the nobility with
an earnestness that has made their am
bitions the by-word of European social
circles. was talking the other day
with prominent Americn. public
.aan who has spent number of years
in the diplomatic service, who said:
Americans should not come to Europe
except to study or when business actu-
ally forces them to come. People with
nothing to do here and with plenty of
monav To snend invariahlv was ste their